Nashua Telegraph: Wilton Town Hall Theatre finds lost silent

[silentfilm]

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Wilton Town Hall Theatre finds lost silent film
By Stacy Milbouer Staff Writer

WILTON – It's been 95 years since the silent film "The Wishing Seat" flickered across the screen at Wilton Town Hall Theatre, the year after the vaudeville theater was converted to a silent-movie house. And as far as anyone knows, that was the last year the movie was ever seen – that is, until a few months ago, when Dennis Markaverich found the film, still in its original can, under the theater's projector.

"We believe it may be the only print of this film still in existence," said Markaverich, who operates the art movie house. He discovered the film a couple of months ago with Dave Stevenson, who helps Markaverich operate the theater's silent-film series. Stevenson owns Looser Than Loose Vintage Publications in Manchester, which converts silent films and other visual media to digital formats.

"It's in mint condition because it's been in the projection room since it was shown here in 1913," Markaverich said.

Ironically, neither Markaverich nor Stevenson has seen the movie.

"We can't," said Markaverich. "It's too delicate. It's blue tone nitrate, which is highly volatile. It can explode if not handled correctly."

Stevenson said the film has been sent to a specialist in Princeton, N.J, who will make a safety positive "print" of the film, which can than be copied.

He thinks the film will run about 10 minutes, and he hopes its first showing in 95 years will be at the Wilton Town Hall Theatre. He also hopes to see the original nitrate print sent to the Library of Congress after the safety print is made.

That volatility is probably why there does not appear to be another print of the movie in existence. A lot of silent films have been lost to fire or have just degraded to the point that they can't be restored.

Markaverich said he found the film when he decided to launch a silent movie series on the last Sunday of every month at 4:30 p.m. He remembered seeing a pile of the old reel-to-reel cans in a cabinet under the theater's projection booth and thought there might be some silent films among them. He said back in the early days of film, distributors would ship copies of movies to the theaters, but unlike now, the theaters were not expected to ship them back.

The Wilton Town Hall Theatre was built in 1886 and first used as a playhouse for traveling shows and vaudeville. It was then converted in 1912 to a silent film house, the year before "The Wishing Seat" was released.

When he made the discovery, Markaverich was with Stevenson.

"We saw the movie in its original container, and we knew it was something special as soon as we saw it. We were screaming, because we knew it was something rare – a real discovery."

Perhaps because it's so rare, there seems to be very little information about "The Wishing Seat," except that the American Film Production Co. released it in June 5, 1913. The only description of the film that seems to be around is an ad printed June 5, 1913:

"She was romanceful, and longed for a lover – so she sat in the wishing seat and wished! When lo! Her wish was answered. Down to her feet rolled an artist from a neighboring bluff, feet over head, and badly besmeared with his paint and the dirt of the mountainside. But she didn't care how Cupid came, so long as he came!"

The film starred Pauline Bush, J. Kerrigan, Louise Lester and George Periolat. While the actors' names might be lost to history, "The Wishing Seat" was one of the first movies made by Canadian-American director Allan Dwan, who went on to have a big career in Hollywood. After making a series of westerns and comedies, Dwan directed silent superstars Mary Pickford and her husband, Douglas Fairbanks, in several movies, including "Robin Hood" in 1922.

After talking films came out, he directed Shirley Temple in two of her most famous films, "Heidi" (1937) and "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm" (1938).

Dwan directed more than 400 films,including the 1949 hit "The Sands of Iwo Jima," before he died at 96 in 1981.

Stevenson said it was "The Wishing Seat" that accidentally launched Dwan's career as a director.

"He actually worked as an accountant for the American Film Production in New York City. They had sent a company of actors out to California to make the movie because it was warmer and they had more light. But apparently, the original director of the film was not communicating with the folks back in New York, so they sent Dwan out to see what was happening, he said. When he got there, the actors told him the director had gone on a three-week drinking binge.

"When Dwan told that to the home office, they told him to step in as director, and the actors just loved him. That's how he began a lifetime of making movies."

Dwan's successful film career makes the rediscovery of "The Wishing Seat" more important in terms of an early example of his early work, Stevenson said.

Markaverich said he's thrilled that the film was found and that Town Hall Theatre might be able to contribute to the preservation of one piece of American film history.